PCJ – Chapter 583 Hesitation

Zhang Jiaohua was led by Big Bucktooth and his gang to the place where Gu Hao was waiting.

As soon as he saw Zhang Jiaohua approaching, Gu Hao immediately panicked.

“You—you—what do you want?” Gu Hao was afraid of getting beaten.

“You guys beat him up, and I’ll let you go. Otherwise, we’ll follow the rules of the streets—each of you leaves a hand behind. Bucktooth, what do you choose?” Zhang Jiaohua smiled as he spoke to Big Bucktooth.

Big Bucktooth thought for a moment, then turned to Gu Hao and asked, “Young Master Gu, do you know my name?”

Gu Hao didn’t understand, so he shook his head, thinking, “You street thugs—I wouldn’t know your names.”

“Then do you know their names?” Bucktooth asked again.

Gu Hao shook his head again, but suddenly realized what Bucktooth was getting at. He hurriedly said, “Bucktooth, if I can find you guys, I can find out everything about you. If you dare to touch me, I’ll make sure to get revenge. The Gu family has influence not just in the capital. Even if you run, I’ll find you.”

“Then we’ll have to make you a dead man to feel safe,” Bucktooth replied coldly.

Gu Hao wanted to slap himself. He just dug his own grave. He quickly said, “No, no, don’t kill me. I swear I won’t retaliate.”

“But your Gu family is powerful. If you go back on your word, we’re done for,” Bucktooth still wasn’t convinced.

“If you beat me up, even if you get caught, it’s just a simple assault charge. But if you kill me, the Gu family will go crazy. You won’t be able to escape—it’ll be a death sentence,” Gu Hao tried to reason with them.

“That makes sense. Then we’ll just give you a good beating. Sorry, but if we don’t, we’ll have to face street justice,” Bucktooth said, then punched him hard.

Gu Hao was knocked to the ground, blood pouring from his torn lip.

Bucktooth and his crew beat Gu Hao brutally until he was curled up on the ground, moaning in pain. Then they stopped. But when they turned around, Zhang Jiaohua was already gone.

“We’re in trouble! Pack up and run—now! If the Gu family finds out, we’re dead. Thankfully, Gu Hao doesn’t even know who we are. Even in the gang, only a few know our background. Once we leave the area, they won’t be able to find us,” Bucktooth was still quite level-headed.

As the beating started, Zhang Jiaohua had already turned and left. He knew this wasn’t the end, but he wasn’t afraid of the Gu family’s retaliation. He called Wei Chenguang and explained the situation.

Wei Chenguang wasn’t worried at all. “I’ll have Changxin handle it. If the Gu family knows what’s good for them, they’ll drop it. If not, we can wipe them out.”

Soon, the Gu family found the badly beaten Gu Hao. Although Gu Hao was known in the family as a good-for-nothing, seeing him like that still enraged the Gu family.

Gu Hao’s father, Gu Jinwen, was the police chief of the city’s western district—an influential man. He went into a fury at the sight of his son’s injuries.

“This is lawlessness!” Gu Jinwen grabbed his phone, ready to order an investigation.

Gu Hao, knowing it was pointless to find those small-time thugs, told his father to go after Zhang Jiaohua instead. Since Zhang was connected to the Xu Auction House, they should have information on him. So Gu Jinwen prepared to send men there.

Unexpectedly, Wei Changxin arrived at the Gu household.

“Director Wei, what brings you here?” Gu Jinwen suddenly felt uneasy.

“Chief Gu, there are some things I think we need to talk about,” Wei Changxin said with a slight smile but a serious tone.

Wei Changxin came to issue a warning—the Wei family wasn’t afraid of the Gu family patriarch’s influence. In fact, the Wei family’s background was even stronger. Not only did they have powerful political ties, but also spiritual cultivation strength. With alliances formed with several sect-affiliated families, the Wei family was now more influential than ever. Wei Changxin himself was quickly rising in political circles.

The Gu family was very wary of the Wei family. They knew that in this society, there were forces far beyond ordinary people—and the Wei family possessed such power.

Gu Jinwen politely escorted Wei Changxin out, then turned back and scolded Gu Hao harshly.

Gu Hao was upset. “Dad, I’m the victim here. Why are we the ones getting warned?”

“Be glad he warned us. If he didn’t, you might already be dead. Do you think we can mess with just anyone in this city? From now on, stay at home—don’t go anywhere. If you cause trouble again, I’ll ask the old man to send you to the army!” Gu Jinwen was genuinely afraid this time. He knew his son’s character well. If Gu Hao continued like this, he might bring disaster not just on himself but on the whole Gu family.

Zhang Jiaohua had no fear of the Gu family’s revenge. No matter what they did, they were no threat to him. This was the advantage of having a powerful sect behind him—there were always people to handle the messy stuff.

Time passed quickly. Soon, high school was nearly over. A countdown calendar had been put up in the classroom—100 days until the college entrance exam. Even a rowdy student like Xu Chuan’an had quieted down.

“Ah, time flies! I still have so much left to review!” Xu Chuan’an complained every day, though his grades weren’t bad. He could easily get into a regular first-tier university. But for Class 1 of No. 4 High School, that wasn’t enough. There were several elite schools nearby that were hard to get into, even for students from Beijing.

“Zhang Jiaohua, which university are you applying to? With your grades, you could get into any school you want,” Xu Xiaoting asked.

Zhang Jiaohua was already 18, a bit taller now at 1.76 meters. He wasn’t the tallest, but with a well-proportioned build, handsome face, and fair skin, he was always the center of attention.

Xu Xiaoting was also strikingly beautiful, the pride of the class and the school.

She often walked with Zhang Jiaohua—they were widely considered a couple. Even though he rarely participated in school team matches anymore, he remained a prominent figure at No. 4 High School.

Zhang Jiaohua hadn’t decided what to do after the exam. He knew he wasn’t destined to live like a regular student.

“I haven’t thought that far ahead. Let’s wait until after the exams,” he replied.

Xu Xiaoting was anxious—not about grades, but about the feeling that Zhang Jiaohua might disappear from her life after high school. There was something mysterious about him that set him apart from other students.

Zheng Wendong no longer gave off that sinister vibe. It seemed he had fully cut ties with the cult, and he no longer remembered the past tensions with Zhang Jiaohua. Even the cult leader never came looking for them, which Zhang found surprising.

“Zhang Jiaohua, I might skip the college entrance exam. A pro team has scouted me—I’m thinking of going pro,” Zheng Wendong told him.

“Isn’t it too early? You might not even get playing time,” Zhang said. He felt it was a gamble to go pro so soon.

“This kind of chance is rare. If I give it up, I might regret it forever. School training is no match for a pro club. My grades aren’t good enough for a top school anyway. Even if I got into college, I’d just end up playing ball and learning nothing. I might as well go all in,” Zheng Wendong had made up his mind.

Everyone in class had their own goals now, but Zhang Jiaohua felt lost. His path was different. He didn’t even know what kind of goal to set.

Their homeroom teacher, Wei Yunlong, was concerned about Zhang’s state.

“Your grades aren’t a problem, but your attitude is worrying. Since you gave up your recommendation, you need to do your best on the exam. Even a little slacking could ruin your chances,” Wei advised.

Zhang Jiaohua wasn’t worried, though—others were more anxious than he was.

Wu Yuan had been staying home more, supposedly to ensure Zhang had proper nutrition.

In Meizi’ao village, Zhang Youping and Liu Qiaoye were packing to go to the capital.

Zhang Manyin and Ma Donghua packed a box of farm eggs.

“You can’t buy these in the city—they feed city chickens garbage. Jiaohua used to love fried eggs. Tell him to do well on the exam. No one in the Zhang family has gone to college. He’s always been top of the class—this time, aim for Tsinghua University. Yuanbao might get into an average school at best,” said Zhang Manyin, who believed Tsinghua was the best school in the world.

Zhang Youping had to carry the box. They had lots of luggage—villagers brought more gifts for Zhang Jiaohua, all in gratitude for what he had done for their village.

Fortunately, they didn’t have to handle the logistics themselves—Biyu Xianyin Group took care of it.

This time, instead of staying at Wu Yuan’s, Zhang Youping and Liu Qiaoye went to a newly bought apartment nearby—renovated and ready to support Jiaohua through exam season.

“You think our son will be surprised we came?” Liu Qiaoye asked her husband.

“Of course! He’ll be thrilled. Wu Yuan said he hasn’t been acting right lately. That’s why we rushed over,” said Zhang Youping.

“I’m not worried about the exam. If our boy wants to, he can get into any school. I’m more worried he won’t want to go. You know he’s different. His heart isn’t in it,” Liu Qiaoye admitted.

Zhang Youping frowned. “What if he doesn’t want to study anymore?”

“Then we shouldn’t force him. He’s like a hawk from Meishan—meant to fly. We try to cage him—it won’t make him happy. He’s learned cultivation. He’s not like us. Forcing him to fulfill our dreams is unfair,” Liu Qiaoye saw things clearly.

“But what about his grandfather? We’ve never had a college student in the Zhang family. Giving up on Tsinghua would be a real waste,” said Zhang Youping.

“I don’t care about that. As long as Jiaohua’s happy. Everything we have, he earned. He’ll never need to worry about money. Why make him suffer studying things he doesn’t need?” Liu Qiaoye replied firmly.

“Then why come?” Zhang Youping asked.

“I’m just worried—what if he does want to go to college?” Liu Qiaoye glared at him. “Why so serious?”

Zhang Youping scratched his head. Whatever he said seemed wrong, so he wisely stayed silent.